“Hackers?” She straightened in her seat.
“White hat, of course. But between you and me, they might skirt a few laws to make sure the right things happen.”
She watched him as she ate another spring roll. Then a dumpling. He knew the power of silence, of letting people have the time to think. Especially those who had so little control.
She finished a skewer, then asked, “Are those the people who might help find my mom?”
He rose from his seat and walked behind the tasting bar as he answered. “There’s no ‘might’ about it. They will if I ask them. But yeah, it’s them.”
“How can you be so sure?” she asked.
Bending down, he examined the contents of the fridge. “Water, some sort of fancy fruit soda, or ginger beer?”
“Fruit soda.”
He nodded and grabbed a can for her and a beer for him. “I can be sure because they’re practically family. Not blood family, but it’s…a little complicated.”
She raised a dark eyebrow. “You called me a savant. I can handle a little complicated.”
“Touché,” he said on a chuckle, before telling her about his fourteen brothers and Mantis and Charley and Joey and Leo. “Like I said, complicated. But it is what it is. Family isn’t always what we’re born into. Thank fuck,” he muttered, then grimaced. He didn’t need to encourage her language.
She snorted at his expression, then quickly covered her nose as the sip she’d taken hit her nostrils. He laughed as she wiped her face with a napkin, all while rolling her eyes.
“That stung,” she said on a smile, tucking her napkin back under her plate.
“Yeah, it does.”
“Will they really help?”
“I told you they will.”
“And they won’t call the cops?”
“I can’t promise that.” Her expression shut down, but he wasn’t going to lie to her. “If they find out your mother’s been hurt or needs help or is in danger, they might need to call in law enforcement. But if that’s the case, they won’t do it without talking to you first. I can also promise they won’t report her for leaving you here. Especially not if they know you’re in good hands.”
“Yours?”
“If you’re not comfortable with me, like I said, I have a huge family-by-choice, including several new sisters. The Warwick family—Charley and Joey’s family—would step in, too, if you’d rather be with someone else.”
“I can just leave.”
“Why head out on your own when you have options?” he said, knowing he couldn’t push her. “I get that trusting people isn’t easy, that it probably goes against everything your survival instincts are telling you. I won’t belittle that because those instincts have kept you alive. Sometimes, though, whenpresented with a novel situation, those instincts can be off. But I can’t make you trust me. That’s a decision you have to make.”
“Can I sleep on it?”
“Yeah, but don’t bail on me tonight. I’ve already got a lot of shit going on and you’ll give me a heart attack if I have to worry about you, too.”
“I can take care of myself. You don’t have to worry about me.”
“Too late.” He didn’t miss the brief flare of hope in her eyes.
She blinked and looked away, taking another sip of her drink. Several minutes passed before she turned back and nodded. “I’ll stay.”
“Thank you,” he said, rising and holding his hand out to take her empty plate. She hesitated, confused by the offer, then handed it over. “Why don’t you head up and get some sleep. I can turn the heat on in that part of the castle, too, if you like.”
She blinked again, then nodded and started for the stairs. He followed but stepped into the kitchen as she continued down the hall.
“Collin?”
